2015 Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT

The least-expensive Aston Martin since the 1980s is also one of the most focused.

It’s pretty much a given that if you want a new Aston Martin, you’d better save your pennies. But starting this fall, you’ll need to save considerably fewer of them, as Aston Martin is introducing the new V8 Vantage GT for “just” $102,725 for the coupe, and $117,225 for the roadster. That’s $18,500 and $18,000 cheaper than the standard V8 Vantage coupe and roadster models. Such a deal!

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It actually is a bit of a deal, at least by Aston Martin standards. Let us explain: first, it looks appropriately bad-ass in any of its five festive liveries—Alloro Green with white, Jet Black with silver, Skyfall Silver with anthracite, Mariana Blue with silver, and Speedway White with silver. Roadster models come exclusively with a black fabric top, while Vantage S side sills, black exterior trim (on the headlamp bezels, window trim, hood vent meshwork, and tailpipes), clear-lens taillamps, and dark-painted, diamond-turned 19-inch wheels render all V8 Vantage GTs sufficiently accessorized. Inside, the leather-lined interior comes in black or gray, with yellow, black, gray, or red accents, piano black trim, sport seats like those in the V12 Vantage, a navigation system, GT sill plaques and seat embroidery, and one of Aston’s famous glass keys.

Second, the V8 Vantage’s 4.7-liter, quad-cam dry-sump V-8 was not detuned for use in the new GT models—quite the contrary, actually: with 430 horsepower at 7300 rpm and 361 lb-ft of torque at 5000 rpm, the engine arrives in the same state of tune as the $133,525 Vantage S, not the 420 horses and 346 lb-ft of the standard model. (See, told ya it was a deal!) The standard transmission remains Aston’s lovely six-speed manual, while its seven-speed single-clutch SportShift II automated manual is optional. It rides on a sport suspension tuned closely to that of the Vantage S.

In our previous experience with the V8 Vantage, the SportShift II is worth skipping, especially if you want to add interior niceties like, say, heated seats, cruise control, an auto-dimming mirror with garage-door opener, Bluetooth, a satellite radio, memory seats, and other things you might expect would come standard on any six-figure car. Or you can put the money toward one of Aston’s striking painted graphics packs that add a contrasting color to the mirror caps, A-pillars, and grille surround, with the choices being blue/red, black/gray, white/red, silver/white, and classic green/yellow. Or you can add a whomping 1000-watt Bang & Olufsen sound system, carbon-fiber exterior trim, a trunk-mounted umbrella, or . . . whatever, there’s a long list.

The elephant in the room, of course, is that as sweet as it is, the V8 Vantage is a 10-year-old car, one that has undergone relatively few changes since its launch. With newfound competition from such spectacular cars as the Jaguar F-Type, Aston needs a model like the more focused GT to keep the car on buyers’ collective radar. The fact that it’s a bit more attainably priced is icing on this very sweet cake.